For the Portland Timbers, home field is a real advantage

The Portland Timbers posted a record of 11-1-5 in home games during the 2013 MLS regular season, tying them with San Jose for the league's best home record. The Timbers will host Seattle in the second and final game of the Western Conference playoff semifinal series Nov. 7. Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian

(Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian)

A 90-minute soccer game has dozens of variables that can affect the outcome, but when the Portland Timbers face the Seattle Sounders in the MLS playoffs on Thursday night, there is one factor in particular that could tilt things in Portland's favor:

The Timbers have been nearly unbeatable at home this season.

That factor cannot be ignored when the two teams play the second and final game of the two-leg, aggregate-goal Western Conference semifinals. The Timbers hold a one-goal lead after a 2-1 win at Seattle on Saturday night.

Portland finished the regular season riding a 15-game unbeaten streak at Jeld-Wen Field. The Timbers' last home loss — and only loss of the season — was a 2-1 setback to Montreal on March 9, nearly eight months ago.

The Timbers finished tied with San Jose for the best home record in MLS (11-1-5) during the 2013 season. The Timbers and Earthquakes weren't the only teams to play well at home. All 19 teams posted a better home record than away.

That's not a surprise. Regardless of the sport, teams usually play better at home. Coaches, players and sports psychologists say some of the reasons behind the stronger play at home focus on maintaining a routine, comfort with the surroundings, visualization of past success, strong fan support and a more aggressive mindset.

"The game comes easier and there's more of the flow feeling when they're comfortable and they're familiar with the surroundings," said Elliott Waksman, a sports performance consultant based in Portland. "The comfort is just feeling confident in your game and the surroundings. The arena. The environment. The locker room."

Playing at home doesn't guarantee a win, of course — the Timbers just won in Seattle — but the probability of winning increases for the home team.

Portland has finished with a winning record at home in each of its three MLS seasons. The Timbers have posted a combined home record of 27-10-14 in their first three MLS seasons, compared to a record of 6-25-20 in away games. The Timbers have won or tied 80 percent of their home matches during the three seasons, and the unbeaten percentage drops to 51 percent in away games.

Overall in MLS this regular season, the home team went unbeaten 72 percent (164-77-82) of the time, compared to 49 percent in away games. Those numbers are consistent with past seasons, with the home team winning or tying 76 percent of home games in 2012 and 75 percent in 2011.

"Home-field advantage is statistically real," said Dr. Kimberly Kahn, an assistant professor at Portland State University who has studied sports psychology. "It's something that we see in almost every sport. There's a consistent pattern that teams perform better at home than on the road. You can see that even reflected in betting lines. Often the home team is given additional points when Las Vegas is calculating odds."

Playing a game at home allows players to maintain a consistent and familiar routine that they're accustomed to on game days. Whether it's sleeping for a specific amount of time at home, going through the same activities during the day or eating a pregame meal at a certain time, a consistent routine helps a player prepare and relax before the game.

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In terms of my preparation, it doesn't really change much. I wake up around the same time and I eat around the same time," Portland right back Jack Jewsbury said. "I just try to keep things scheduled out, in terms of time and breaking down my day."

Experiencing a familiar routine also ties into why road teams can struggle. Those same players must deal with a routine that is thrown out of whack on the road.

Players sleep in hotel rooms and arrive to the game by airplane or bus, instead of driving their own cars after leaving their own house or apartment.

Home team players see and experience familiarity when they arrive at the stadium, from a parking spot to the faces and landmarks on the way to the locker room. Players' lockers may have pictures of family members plastered on the wall or door.

"It's easier to get into those routines at home than away," Seattle midfielder Brad Evans said. "When you're on the road, your routine is different and that can potentially throw you off mentally a bit."

Going from the locker room to the field, players will step onto a pitch that will vary in size from team to team. It's an aspect that is unique to soccer.

All NFL football fields are 120 yards long and 53 1/3 yards wide. Every NBA basketball court is 94 feet long and 50 feet wide. NHL rinks are 200 feet by 85 feet.

But the dimensions of MLS fields vary. The Timbers' field is 110 yards long and 74 yards wide. The Sounders' field is 110-by-70, and the Los Angeles Galaxy's field at the StubHub Center is 120-by-75, one of the largest fields.

Opposing players and coaches have complained about the compactness of the Timbers' home field — usually after a loss. But it's also an advantage for the Timbers if the opposition doesn't adjust.

"No two fields are the same. The home team is going to have more specialized knowledge of the stadium and the field, which can definitely translate into performance differences on the field," Kahn said. "You know your home stadium better than other people because you're spending more time practicing on it."

The Timbers have rallied from several deficits at home to earn a win or draw during their three MLS seasons.

They responded to a one-goal deficit by scoring for a 1-1 draw against Dallas in August 2012 and scored a game-winning goal in a 2-1 win against Vancouver three weeks later. Portland rallied to tie Seattle 1-1 on Sept. 15 and scored a second-half goal for a 1-1 draw against San Jose to close out the 2012 season.

Portland started the 2013 regular season by erasing a two-goal deficit in a 3-3 draw against New York in March. The Timbers scored two goals after trailing 1-0 to defeat Los Angeles in July, and they overcame a one-goal deficit to take a 3-2 lead before settling for a 3-3 draw against Real Salt Lake on Aug. 21.

The ability to recall previous rallies can help teams overcome deficits to earn a win or a draw. Visualizing a previous positive experience can aid a team that is trailing in the game.

"The athletes are going to have better memories at their home field. More vivid memories," Waksman said. "They're also going to have more memories to pull from. They're going to have better stories in their minds. A lot more memories of success to recall, which can assist them in dealing with adversity during a game."

The home crowd is also a factor. The intimacy of the stadium puts fans very close to the field, making Jeld-Wen Field one of the most intimidating venues in MLS. With an active sellout streak of 51 consecutive games at Jeld-Wen Field and a season ticket waiting list of about 10,000, the Timbers are one of the hottest tickets in the city. The Timbers Army, about 5,000 strong, is one of the league's largest supporter groups.

"There's a basic social-psychological process called social facilitation. That basically says that audience members can enhance or facilitate a performance," Kahn said. "There are actual psychological effects of the cheer of the crowd, beyond just noise distraction for the other team. It really does psychologically motivate the home team in different ways than it does the road team."

Just knowing the fans will be singing, chanting, supporting and taunting opposing players throughout the game is a source of energy for the Portland players.

"It's just something about playing in front of your supporters and feeling better," Portland midfielder Will Johnson said. "You've got 20,000 people screaming at us and getting us going. That gets your insides going crazy."

The Sounders know well the power of an energized home field. They averaged a league-leading 44,038 fans per game in 2013 and have led MLS in home attendance in each season since they joined the league in 2009. Their Aug. 25 home game against Portland attracted a crowd of 67,385, the second-highest attendance for a stand-alone game in MLS history.

Seattle finished with a 10-2-5 home record in 2013. They scored 29 goals at home, compared to 13 in away games. Defensively, they conceded 15 goals at home, a total that nearly doubled (27) on the road.

"A lot of teams have a different approach whether they're at home or on the road," Seattle coach Sigi Schmid said. "At home, they go for it a little more. On the road, they're maybe a little more conservative and they change their style a little bit."

The Timbers know they will receive strong support from the fans Thursday night, and the factors that help home teams win games will be in play. The Timbers hope those factors and their performance will be enough to win the game, eliminate the Sounders and move through to the conference finals.